Daily Reflections
December 16
PARTNERS IN RECOVERY
” … nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics … Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress. Follow the dictates of a Higher Power, and you will presently live in a new and wonderful world, no matter what your present circumstances!”
-ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, pp. 89, 100
Doing the right things for the right reasons—this is my way of controlling my selfishness and self-centeredness. I realize that my dependency on a Higher Power clears the way for peace of mind, happiness and sobriety. I pray each day that I will avoid my previous actions, so that I will be helpful to others.
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
December 16
A.A. Thought For The Day
The way of A.A. is the way of faith. We don’t get the full benefit of the program until we surrender our lives to some Power greater than ourselves and trust that Power to give us the strength we need. There is no better way for us. We can get sober without it. We can stay sober for some time without it. But if we are going to truly live, we must take the way of faith in God. That is the path for us. We must follow it. Have I taken the way of faith?
Meditation For The Day
Life is not a search for happiness. Happiness is a by-product of living the right kind of a life, of doing the right thing. Do not search for happiness, search for right living and happiness will be your reward. Life is sometimes a march of duty during dull, dark days. But happiness will come again, as God’s smile of recognition of your faithfulness. True happiness is always the by-product of a life well lived.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that I may not seek happiness but seek to do right. I pray that I may not seek pleasure so much as the things that bring true happiness.
Walk In Dry Places
December 16
Others must not define us.
Self-image
The thoughtless practice of lumping people into categories can be destructive. Some of us still seethe with resentment over the roles we were given in our families while growing up. We realize that this way of being defined was a put-down.
As adults living sober, we must now make sure that we define ourselves in ways that contribute to our success and happiness. If others attempt to attach labels to us, we must not accept this … at least not in our own minds.
If others are attempting to define us in this way, we must always ask whether we’ve invited such labeling. Did your behavior somehow give them this impression? Did we mask our true feelings to present an image with which we don’t really want to live? Whatever the answer, we must take charge of defining who we are and what we want to be.
If I don’t like the way people have been viewing me, I’ll change the signals I’ve been sending out. Any signals I send should fit the way I really want to be known.
Keep It Simple
December 16
“Charity sees the need, not the cause.”
—German proverb
Charity is not just giving money to good causes. Charity is having a heart that’s ready to give. Charity is helping a friend at two in the morning. Charity is going early to the meeting to put on coffee without being asked.
Service is how Twelve Step programs refer to “Charity.” Service and charity are a lifestyle. We see a need, so we try to help. Our values and our heart will guide us in how we help. Service is a big part of our program. Service helps us think of others, not just of ourselves. We stop asking, “What’s in it for me?” The act of helping others is what’s in it for us. Sobriety is what’s in it for us. Serenity is what’s in it for us.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, You have given me many talents. Help me see how my talents can make the world a better place. Giving of myself is believing in You and myself.
Action for the Day: Today, I’ll list my talents and I’ll think of ways I can use them to help others.
“The secret of what life’s all about, was answered by the sages: Life’s about one day at a time, No matter what your age is.”
—Robert Half“In discussing an approach to bringing about positive changes within oneself, learning is only the first step. There are other factors as well: conviction, determination, action and effort.”
—Dalai Lama“If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm, you’ll never enjoy the sunshine.”
—Morris West“It is a defining moment when someone in authority finally reaches the conclusion that leadership is not about using people—it’s about serving them.”
—Neil Eskelin“Until you have learned to be tolerant with those who do not always agree with you; until you have cultivated the habit of saying some kind word of those whom you do not admire; until you have formed the habit of looking for the good instead of the bad there is in others, you will be neither successful nor happy.”
—Napoleon Hill“Everyone Smiles in the same language.”
—Proverb“Pain comes like the weather, but joy is a choice.”
—Rodney Crowell, Singer, Songwriter
Father Leo’s Daily Meditation
December 16
GENEROSITY
“Liberty is the one thing you can’t have unless you give it to others.”
—William Allen White
Spirituality is rooted in a respect for self that demands an equal respect for others. I can expect to be treated with dignity if I afford dignity to others. In the one is the key to the many.
For years I lived a compulsive life that only made me self-centered and spoiled, and it didn’t work! I was unhappy, lonely and resentful. Today I find that the more I give to others the more I receive. Less is more.
In this sense it is much easier to be good than bad because “goodness” works!
Spirit of generosity, may I always reflect the gratitude that gives.
Daily Inspiration
December 16
Do that which is right and learn to do it for the right reason. Lord, give us strength as we stand up to temptation and spiritual power as we resist the pressures and stresses that bear down on us.
You cannot ask too much if you use your blessings ceaselessly. Lord, help me to reflect on and live in Your spirit.
Elder’s Meditation of the Day
December 16
“If you have one hundred people who live together, and if each one cares for the rest, there is One Mind.”
—Shining Arrows, CROW
One of the principles of Community is Unity. The alignment of thoughts in groups of people will cause One Mind to form. One Mind is Unity. Each individual in the community must align their thoughts with what other members are thinking. If all the people think of helping one another, then the community will be service oriented and powerful results will be enjoyed. Having our thoughts aligned within a group will cause our children to experience a positive environment. When they have children, the grandchildren will automatically experience these results also.
My Creator, help me to contribute to positive group thought.
Today’s Gift
December 16
“Because you’re not what I would have you be, I blind myself to who, in truth, you are.”
—Madeleine L’Engle
Sometimes we expect far too much of the people around us, and because no one can ever live up to those expectations, we are almost always disappointed. But wouldn’t it be better if we just let go, and let people be who they are? Then we’d be able to see them as they are—with all their beauty and goodness in which we take joy, and with all their faults, which we can also see in ourselves.
When we have put someone up on a pedestal, sculpturing them to fit our needs and desires by smoothing out the rough edges and creating new curves here and there, we cannot see the real person underneath our work. All we see is the illusion we have created. That is denying the person’s real identity and is disrespectful. It’s much better for our friends and for ourselves if we drop our expectations and illusions, and accept them all just the way they are.
What unfair expectations do I have of others?
Touchstones Meditations For Men
December 16
“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart And try to love the questions themselves.”
—Rainer Maria Rilke
Patience with ourselves may be the first step toward patience with others. In getting to know ourselves, we don’t find what we have expected. If we did, we would only be proving what we already knew. Sometimes growth comes in surprising ways. It may be in acceptance and learning to love what is unsettled or unclear within. Some of us men want to rush through our learning and push our growth too fast. Others of us want to have a strong sense of confidence in our relationships with others but always feel vulnerable. Some wonder why their fears suddenly rise without warning. Another longs to know why certain things happened to him in his youth. Our growth is not our invention. When answers come, they are gifts, and we do not control them.
In part, self-acceptance is to say, “Yes, I am a person with this question, this unsettled feeling. Being alive is to be actively engaged in knowing and loving my questions even when I find no answer.”
God, grant me the peace that comes with loving the unfinished part of me.
Daily TAO
December 16
HOURGLASS
Life is like an hourglass.
Consciousness is the sand.
Imagine an hourglass.
Its shape is like the symbol for infinity. Its form recalls the double helix of DNA. Its two sections represent polarity. The material on one side, the immaterial on the other. The male on one side, and the female on the other. Hot and cold, positive and negative, or any other duality.
The sand runs in a stream, the same stream as the course of energy that runs up your spine, the same stream that is the road of life.